The Irish famine of 1845-52 was the most decisive event in the history of Ireland. In a country of 8 million people, the Famine caused the death of approximately 1 million, forced a similar number to emigrate, and reduced the Irish population to just over 1 million by the beginning of the 20th century. This book unravels fact from opinion, confronts the role of ethnic stereotypes, and examines the ruling Anglo-Irish government's response to the disaster while analyzing its motives. She reveals the scope of the Famine's impact, showing how local communities were affected and provides a detailed account of the relief measures organized at both local and national levels. -- Publisher description

The Great Irish Famine was one of the most devastating humanitarian disasters of the nineteenth century. In a period of only five years, Ireland lost approximately 25% of its population through a combination of death and emigration. How could such a tragedy have occurred at the heart of the vast, and resource-rich, British Empire? Charity and the Great Hunger in Ireland explores this question by focusing on a particular, and lesser-known, aspect of the Famine: that being the extent to which people throughout the world mobilized to provide money, food and clothing to assist the starving Irish. This book considers how, helped by developments in transport and communications, newspapers throughout the world reported on the suffering in Ireland, prompting funds to be raised globally on an unprecedented scale. Donations came from as far away as Australia, China, India and South America and contributors emerged from across the various religious, ethnic, social and gender divides. Charity and the Great Hunger in Ireland traces the story of this international aid effort and uses it to reveal previously unconsidered elements in the history of the Famine in Ireland.

Between 1845 and 1855, nearly 1.5 million Irish women, men, and children sailed to America to escape the Great Famine, triggered by successive years of potato blight. The famine and resulting emigration had a profound impact not only on the history of Ireland, but on that of England and North America as well. This volume of original essays commemorates the 150th anniversary of these epochal events and sheds new light on both the consequences of the famine and experience of the Irish in America.